6 Ways to Improve Your Business’ Communication

The way you communicate as a business is hugely important and can speak volumes about your company. Whether you’re communicating with other colleagues or with your customers, the way you relay your message can mean the difference between happy hard working employees and quick staff turn-over, or loyal satisfied customers and a bad word of mouth. It can also mean the difference between an amazing marketing campaign, or throwing money down the drain.

First things first, how can you improve your internal communication?

Provide Employees with Feedback

There’s nothing worse than feeling unsure unvalued in the workplace. One of the most simple solutions is feedback. This doesn’t mean pulling employees into an office one by one. Instead, give brief reports on recent projects, or let employees know what will be expected in upcoming tasks. Providing feedback is a cost effective solution that can make sure your employees feel appreciated and empowered.

Install Collaboration Software

While you can call meetings, they’re not always the most effective or relaxing way of communicating with your employees. Plus, all of those meetings can add up to a lot of unproductive business hours. To make sure everyone can pitch in and find out what’s going on, use an online collaboration platform to encourage work and idea sharing, increase productivity and engagement, and allow teamwork from any device or location.

Remember: Speech is Powerful

In a technology centred universe, business tends to be conducted through a screen, but sometimes, old fashioned methods are best. To improve communications with your employees, try picking up the phone. Whether it’s about a complex work task or a difficult personal situation, moving away from technology and simply talking shows staff that you’re approachable and willing to help, and could also boost employee morale.

What about external relationships?

Let them Come to You

Although it’s important to be able to reach out to potential or existing customers, it’s vital that they’re able to get in contact with you, too. To do this, always advertise communication channels by clearly displaying phone, email or social media information. Whether you have a dedicated page on your website, or display contact details on your business brochure, make it as easy as possible for clients and customers to come to you.

Invest in Communication

Communication comes down to listening, understanding and responding, but when it comes to business, it’s a completely different ball game. When talking to customers, you need to be able to communicate in a polite, professional and timely manner, so choose your methods wisely. This could include investing in high-speed internet for a reliable live chat, a telephony service such as Gradwell, or continual customer service training and development.

Aim to Follow Up

One of the easiest ways of bettering external communication is by following-up. In terms of customers, this could mean calling to ask if they’re happy with their service or to make sure an issue has been resolved. Or, for business clients, it could be as simple as sending an email to say thank you for a meeting, or keeping them informed of project developments.

There are a number of ways to improve business communication, from utilising software and clever web design, to personal touches and staff training. Try these methods to boost satisfaction of customers, employees and business clients.